Silly/ridiculous references can be easier to remember with less repetition of use (to me at least). The more literal meaning might be more straight forward, but

Silly/ridiculous references can be easier to remember with less repetition of use (to me at least). The more literal meaning might be more straight forward, but the more absurd one imprints on the mind easier at times. One of the silliest (but effective) examples I've seen is for identifying the songs/calls of birds[1]. Bird calls tend to be kind of abstract to classify, but if you can match them up to a silly mnemonic, they're pretty easy to remember (for me at least). I think everyone encounters at least a few in school. Rules of integration by parts[2] Order of Operations[3] OSI Model[4] Biology Taxonomy Resistor Color Codes Trig functions [1] http://www.stanford.edu/~kendric/birds/birdsong.html http://www.stanford.edu/~kendric/birds/birdsong.html [2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Integration_by_parts#LIATE_rule http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Integration_by_parts#LIATE_rule [3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_operations#Mnemonics http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_operations#Mnemonics [4] http://www.techexams.net/forums/ccna-ccent/34490-your-mnemonic-trick-remember-osi-layer.html http://www.techexams.net/forums/ccna-ccent/34490-your-mnemon...